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PhD in International History

 

Programme information

  
 
Degree: PhD in International History  
 
Mode of Study: Full-time  
 
Duration: 4 years  
 
Start date: September  
 
Language of instruction: English and French  
 
Location: Geneva, Switzerland  
     

 

 

OVERVIEW

The PhD in International History is a four-year programme equipping students with the analytical, conceptual and methodological tools to complete successfully a piece of original book-length research. A small number of required courses orient students before they are permitted to move on to the research component. Courses, seminars and research projects in the Department cluster around the intersecting themes of international relations, institutions and movements; global/world and transnational history; history and policy; the history of ideas; the Global South and postcoloniality; and the histories of individual regions – the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, East Asia and South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Key features

  • This PhD combines coursework, seminars, a preliminary thesis and defence, and the doctoral thesis itself.
  • The department admits a very limited number of students to this programme.
  • The programme encourages direct contact, debates and exchange with faculty and fellow-students.
  • During their first year, students are required to take four courses: a doctoral seminar, taught by two different faculty members, and two semester-long courses in their area of interest.
  • In the first semester of their second year, they prepare and defend a preliminary thesis, explaining their research project and methods.
  • After successful completion of the preliminary thesis, students are left with five semesters to complete their research and writing (often outside Geneva), and submit and defend their doctoral thesis.

more information

If you have further questions or wish to ask current students about their experience write to prospective@graduateinstitute.ch.

Students wishing to visit the Department in advance of their application should contact dr-hp@graduateinstitute.ch at least one month in advance of their desired visit date. Please look at the academic calendar for opening/closing dates.

Essentials

Application

Student testimonials

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